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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26662744">Mick Mercury and the Friendly Luncheon</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/prydon/pseuds/prydon'>prydon</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Penumbra Podcast</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff with feelings, Humor, Mick is a great best friend and Nureyev is a great boyfriend, Other, Reference to past domestic abuse, They may not buy it at first but soon they will learn this about each other</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:41:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,707</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26662744</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/prydon/pseuds/prydon</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Juno has been talking to Mick about his new boyfriend over comms for weeks now. Today Mick is finally going to meet the man himself over lunch, after hearing all about just how adorable he apparently is.</p><p>Upon meeting him, however, Mick wonders whether Juno actually understands the meaning of the word "adorable".</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Peter Nureyev/Juno Steel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>320</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Mick Mercury and the Friendly Luncheon</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>MY TURN to write a "Mick meets Nureyev and is wary of him bc he knows about Juno's past bad relationships" fic, with a slight spin on it. Basically I had the idea that Juno probably thinks his bf is super cute but anyone who actually meets Nureyev would likely disagree since he looks like a scary vampire man. Then I wrote this.</p><p>Just a fun little thing I wanted to make before finishing the other fic I'm working on to prove that I CAN write things that aren't canon compliant Nureyev character studies set on board the Carte Blanche (I promise!!!!)</p><p>CWs for references to past domestic abuse and a tiny bit of swearing.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mick sits at the table, fiddling with his tie.</p><p>He doesn’t know how to feel about this establishment.  It’s much higher class than the places he’s used to going to, and he feels somewhat out of place. He dressed in his best outfit to come here, which meant his work uniform, because it’s the closest thing to fancy clothes he has.</p><p>He knows Juno isn’t particularly comfortable in places like this himself, which sets Mick on edge. Apparently, Juno’s new boyfriend chose the location for them.</p><p>Mick doesn’t know how to feel about this new boyfriend, either.</p><p>He’s heard the way Juno’s voice goes all happy and excited whenever he talks about him on their comms calls, so he wants to like him. He wants to trust him. Still, he can remember many times in the past when Juno talked so highly of a romantic partner only for them to still end up hurting him. The lady has always had a tendency to fall into bed with the wrong people. It turns out that if your type is “people that can beat you up”, you might just end up with people who can and will beat you up.</p><p>Mick has seen Juno with black eyes and split lips and weak excuses enough times to know that he can’t trust Juno’s judgement when it comes his current boyfriend.</p><p>Still, he can’t help but hope things are different this time. Something about the way Juno talks about this guy feels different. He doesn’t go on about how strong or smart or hot he is- at least, not just about that. Instead, the words that crop up most often in conversation about the mystery man are ‘adorable’ and ‘cute’.</p><p>
  <em>“You’ll like him, Mick. He’s so cute.”</em>
</p><p>Mick doesn’t even want to think about what percentage of his life he has now spent listening to Juno go on about this man and how adorable he is. He’s heard all about his dimples, and the fact that he snores, and the way he’ll stubbornly keep pronouncing a word wrong rather than admit defeat and concede that Juno’s pronunciation is correct.</p><p>It’s unusual, and he’s hoping it’s a good sign.</p><p>He shifts in his seat, checking his watch. Juno and his boyfriend were supposed to be here ten minutes ago, but they haven’t shown up. It’s weird. Mick is used to him being the late one, not other people. He left his house an hour early to head here, and it was a good thing he did, since he managed to get caught up in three accidents on the way. In his defense, he only caused two of them.</p><p>He watches the door, chewing absently on his straw and feeling surprisingly nervous- on Juno’s behalf, more than his own. He just wants this guy to turn out okay. He wants his best friend to have something properly good in his life, for once.</p><p>Then the bell above the café door jingles, and a man walks in.</p><p>Mick’s eyes are instantly drawn to him. He’s tall and thin, all right angles and sharp points up to the teeth he flashes at the hostess. He’s dressed in a floor-length black gown with a slit all the way up its side, and the warm light of the café makes his numerous earrings and necklaces glitter. His dark hair is slicked back with copious amounts of mousse, his lips are painted the color of dried blood, his two-inch acrylic nails are filed into claws, and his high heels are somehow completely silent as he walks across the tile floor.</p><p>“I’m meeting someone here,” he tells the hostess, and his voice is deeper and richer than Mick expected, with an accent he can’t place and an undercurrent that sets him on edge.  “May I take a look around the establishment?”</p><p>He certainly stands out, but that isn’t why Mick notices him.</p><p>When Mick was a teenager, one of his cousins got him a job working as a cashier at a local convenience store. He wasn’t really there to handle the money- he was terrible at doing that, anyway. He was there to be a security guard, really. He was tall for his age, and broad, so people tended to be intimidated by him. Intimidation was currency, in a place like Oldtown.</p><p>The store was located in a pretty unsavory part of town- not that there were any savory parts- and had been robbed seven different times before Mick was hired. It was robbed seven more times after he was hired, too.</p><p>As time passed, however, Mick started to get good at recognizing trouble when he saw it. It wasn’t about dress or appearance, really. It was about demeanor. People spoke and held themselves differently when they were planning to hold up a convenience store at blaster point. There was a certain look about their eyes and a tone to their voices that gave them away. It was subtle sometimes, but if you caught it, you could hopefully prevent the robbery before it even happened.</p><p>If this tall man in the black gown had walked into his store, he would have been turned away on the spot.</p><p>Mick eyes him nervously. He knows it isn’t his problem if the café gets robbed, but he can’t help but hope it won’t be. Juno jokes that trouble always finds him, and he definitely doesn’t want it to find him here, when he’s trying to make a good impression on Juno’s boyfriend.</p><p>His fears are only confirmed when the man walks by the table next to him and he notices a slightly raised bit of fabric on his side in the exact shape of a knife. Somehow, that scares him more than a blaster bulge would have. Any criminal confident enough to rob an establishment as professional as this one with nothing more than a small knife must be terrifyingly experienced.</p><p>Mick blows bubbles into his drink, looking away and trying to appear innocuous. He can’t get pulled into this right now. He won’t be. For once in his life, he’s going to stay out of trouble.</p><p>“Hello. Are you Mick Mercury?”</p><p>He nearly chokes on air as he looks up and discovers that the tall man has sat down in the seat across from him, legs neatly crossed and arms folded. Up close he’s very beautiful, but in the same way that a freshly sharpened knife is beautiful. Mick can recognize his beauty, even admire it, while also feeling nothing but fear at his presence.</p><p>“H-how do you know my name?” he stammers, already running through a list of possibilities in his head. Had he done so badly at his last job that his employer sent a hitman after him? It’s not out of the question.</p><p>The man smiles, and somehow his teeth are even sharper up close. Mick feels an involuntary shiver run through him. “Ah, so it is you. Nice to meet you, Mr. Mercury.”</p><p>The man reaches out a slender, long-fingered hand. Mick knows he’s offering it to shake, but all he can do is stare at it. It’s the hand of a pickpocket, nimble and completely un-calloused. Mick doesn’t trust hands like that.</p><p>“You can call me Mick,” Mick says weakly.</p><p>The man drops his hand, looking vaguely offended that Mick didn’t take it, and he suddenly worries that he’s done something very wrong- that the man is, perhaps, an otherworldly fae, and by refusing the shake he is making himself a target for the wrath of the fairy queen. Then again, maybe he dodged a bullet, and by taking it he’d have been unknowingly signing away his first born child.</p><p>“Bartholomew ‘Mick’ Mercury…” the man says, dark eyes trailing over him as though trying to see through his skin. “39 years old. Born April 3<sup>rd</sup> on the Earth calendar. Graduated from Oldtown High school in the year-”</p><p>“Hey, buddy, I don’t know what you’re playing at, but you don’t wanna mess with me,” Mick says, mustering as brave of a voice as he can manage. “My best friend is gonna get here real soon, and he’s one tough lady, so if he catches you threatening me, he’ll-”</p><p>“I’ll what, Mick?”</p><p>Mick jumps and looks up, startled. He finds himself face to face with Juno Steel, who is cocking a confused eyebrow at him.</p><p><em>“Jayjay!”</em> Mick exclaims, relief flooding through him. “Where’d you come from?”</p><p>“Uh, the front door.” Juno looks much more relaxed than the last time Mick saw him. He’s dressed in a kente print romper and flip flops instead of his usual patched up old coat and boots, and there’s an easy smile playing on his lips.</p><p>“Oh,” Mick says. “Well, don’t worry about this suspicious customer, I was just giving him a talking to and now he’s gonna get out of here. Right, mister?”</p><p>“I think not,” the strange man says. “After all, I’m here for you.”</p><p>Mick shivers. “No way, buddy. You’re not having any part of me, and <em>especially</em> not my blood. I know everybody says vampires aren’t real, but I’ve seen your teeth, and one time in junior year I know I saw old man Edwards suck a kid’s blood behind the bleachers at Oldtown high-”</p><p>“First of all, that definitely didn’t happen,” Juno says. “Second of all, my boyfriend isn’t a vampire, Mick. He got his teeth done when he was a teenager because he wanted to be edgy.”</p><p><em>“Ju-</em>no!” the strange man who is supposedly not a vampire says indignantly. “I told you that in confidence!”</p><p>“Your…boyfriend,” Mick repeats. He heard what Juno said, but is struggling to process and accept what it entails.</p><p>“Uh-huh,” Juno says. “My boyfriend. The person I am dating. The person who I have spent the last three weeks telling you about over comms, and who picked this place for us to meet up at.”</p><p><em>“This</em>…is your boyfriend.”</p><p>“Yep.” Juno pulls up a seat next to the not-vampire and shoots him a smile. “He was fucking with you, wasn’t he? Sorry about that. Should’ve expected it when he insisted on going in first.”</p><p>The not-vampire sniffs. “I was not. I was simply…testing the waters. The title of ‘best friend’ is a high honor. I’ve been looking forward to finally meeting the person who earned that title from Juno Steel.”</p><p>“I…I’ve been looking forward to meeting you, too,” Mick says, once he’s recovered enough from his shock to speak coherently again. “I’m…sorry. Jay never showed me any pictures of you, so I didn’t know it was you. It’s…really <em>you?!”</em></p><p>The man shoots him a vulpine grin. “What? Am I not what you expected?”</p><p>When Mick takes a moment to really think about it, he can’t say he’s entirely surprised. Juno has always been into dangerous types, for better or for worse- and it’s usually for worse. This man fits that profile exactly, though he’s a bit less buff than many of Juno’s partners.</p><p>Then Mick remembers Juno’s words: <em>“He’s just so adorable, Mick. You have to meet him.”</em></p><p><em>This </em>is the man that Juno thinks is <em>adorable? </em></p><p>“Er, I donno,” he says meekly. “Jay talked a lot about you, but…”</p><p>The man’s eyes flick to Juno. “You talked about me, dear? How flattering,” he says slyly.</p><p>“Whatever. Don’t get a big head about it,” Juno grumbles. “Can’t we just order food already?”</p><p>“Oh, of course.”</p><p>Mick is still recovering from the realization that this terrifying man is Juno’s ‘cute’ boyfriend that he spends most of the meal uncharacteristically quiet. He wants to get a read on the guy to make sure he isn’t dangerous and isn’t going to hurt Juno, but he can’t think of the first thing to say.</p><p>It doesn’t help that he quickly realizes that he doesn’t actually remember the man’s name. He’s certain Juno must have mentioned it at least once, but Mick doesn’t have the slightest clue what it is. He’s tempted to ask, but bites his tongue. He wants to give a good first impression, and admitting you don’t remember the other person’s name isn’t exactly the best way to go about doing that.</p><p>He does manage the classic question: “How did you two meet?” It’s met with inexplicable laughter and a vague answer about running into each other on a case that he’s certain is only a half-truth.</p><p>It also doesn’t help that Juno’s boyfriend keeps shooting him unsettlingly searching looks. Mick feels as though he’s being judged, as though instead of the boyfriend being on the stand to defend whether he deserves to date Juno, Mick is there having to defend whether he deserves to be Juno’s best friend. He gets the feeling that so far, he has failed to convince Juno’s boyfriend that he does.</p><p>Suddenly self-conscious in front of this man with his fancy clothes, sharp wit and judging eye, Mick offers to pour the wine that the server has just left on the table for them. It seems like a classy thing to do. Probably. He doesn’t completely understand what class entails, anyway, but he wants Juno’s boyfriend to think he has it.</p><p>This plan goes relatively okay up into the point where he fumbles the bottle and spills wine all over the front of said boyfriend’s dress.</p><p>“Christ, Mick!” Juno exclaims.</p><p>“I-I’m so sorry about that, mister, it just got away from me a bit, there.”</p><p>To his credit, the man isn’t as angry as Mick had assumed he would be. He’s definitely annoyed, though. He sighs and gets to his feet. “Excuse me. I think I’d better abscond to the bathroom to clean myself up. Thank goodness I’m wearing black…”</p><p>Mick isn’t sure what ‘abscond’ even means, but he apologizes several more times as the man leaves, then slumps back in his chair.</p><p>“I’ve messed it all up, Jay,” he moans.</p><p>Juno snorts. “No, you haven’t. He’ll get over it.”</p><p>Now that they’re alone, Mick can’t keep himself from asking the question that sprung to his mind the moment he’d discovered that the scary man who’d sat down across from him was actually the guy that Juno was dating. “Is that really the guy you’ve been calling cute this whole time?”</p><p>Juno crosses his arms and sticks out his bottom lip. “Yeah. So?”</p><p>“There’s a lot of words I’d use to describe that man, Jay. I donno if ‘cute’ is one of them.”</p><p>“What would you use, then?! …Okay, don’t actually answer that.” Juno sighs. “I know he looks kinda…”</p><p>“Terrifying?”</p><p>“I guess. It’s different once you get to know him, though. He likes to act all cool and tough, but he’s really an idiot.” It’s an insult, but Juno says it with the fondness of someone paying a high compliment. “One time he tried to dye his hair and it came out the wrong color and he started crying. Don’t tell him I told you that, but it’s true. Another time, he stumbled around for five minutes looking for his glasses when they were actually on his forehead, and-”</p><p>Juno goes on like this for a while. After a point, Mick stops processing what he’s actually saying, but he does keep looking at Juno and noting the expression on his face. He looks so…happy. It’s not the ecstatic happiness that comes with the beginnings of infatuation, either- Mick saw that on Juno’s face plenty of times when they were younger, and it hadn’t always ended well. This is a more comfortable sort of happiness. Domestic, almost. Juno talks about his boyfriend with the loving exasperation of someone talking about their spouse of many years, not a recent crush.</p><p>Mick wants to take that as a good sign, but he can’t ignore all the warning bells the man set off in his brain from the moment he walked through the café door. Mick doesn’t know much, but he knows he can usually trust his instincts.</p><p>Juno’s boyfriend returns to the table a few minutes later and takes a seat, somehow looking like he’d never had anything spilled on him at all. “My ears were burning in the washroom, I must admit. Were you two talking about me?”</p><p>“All bad things, I promise,” Juno says, and elbows him lightly.</p><p>The man feigns offense. “Those who say time is the cruelest mistress clearly haven’t met you.”</p><p>This is new too, Mick notes. Juno wasn’t this willing to tease past partners; he’d been too worried they would leave him if he ever mis-stepped. He marks that down under his list of good signs.</p><p>He studies the tall man, trying to look past the mask of perfect posture, fancy clothes and cosmetics that he’s wearing to see whatever it is Juno sees when he looks at him: whatever it is that makes him use words like <em>‘cute’</em>. He thinks he almost catches a glimpse of it, once, when the man lets out a wholly undignified snort-laugh at one of Juno’s terrible jokes. Almost.</p><p>The food isn’t bad, if a bit rich for Mick’s blood. He knows that the food he grew up on wasn’t exactly top tier, or particularly healthy, but it’s what he’s used to- not these strange fancy dishes with their too-small portions and bitter-tasting garnishes (Juno claims you aren’t meant to eat the garnish, but if that’s true, why is it on the plate with the other food?)</p><p>He realizes with a start that he has no idea who’s paying for this meal, and that if it’s him, he almost definitely doesn’t have the creds. “Er…we’re splitting the bill, right, Jay?”</p><p>Juno looks amused. “Don’t worry. I know both you assholes are in the red. I’ll cover it. I’m the one who suggested we have lunch, anyway.”</p><p>“Darling, there’s really no need,” Juno’s boyfriend says immediately. “If I’d known you were footing the bill, I would have chosen a less pricey location-”</p><p>“Seriously, don’t worry about it. I wanna do this, okay?”</p><p>“…Very well.”</p><p>Juno leaves the table to go pay up front, where there’s an automated computer that accepts creds. Mick watches him go, frowning. <em>Both you assholes are in the red. </em>That’s what Juno had said.</p><p>Just looking at Juno’s boyfriend, Mick had immediately placed him as being one of those upper-crust types, the sort who live at the top of high rises in Olympus Mons. For some reason it’s comforting to learn that he is apparently just as bad with money as Mick is.</p><p>The man is currently watching Juno swear at the computer, a smile playing across his lips. “I think he might be up there for a while…”</p><p>“Probably,” Mick agrees. He squares his shoulders and tries to look as resolute and intimidating as possible. “So…while he’s gone, there’s something that I need to say to you.”</p><p>The man tilts his head at him. He doesn’t look at all intimidated, but he does look curious. “Oh? Go on, then.”</p><p>“Jay…has been hurt by a lot of people, you know that?”</p><p>“Unfortunately, yes, I am more than aware of that fact.”</p><p>“He obviously likes you loads, too. I can tell.”</p><p>“I certainly hope so.”</p><p>“So…you’d better not hurt him. I know you’re real scary or whatever, and I’m just me, but if you do anything to make Juno sad, you’ll regret it.”</p><p>The man looks vaguely amused now. “My dear Mick Mercury, are you giving me a shovel talk?”</p><p>“Maybe! I’m just saying, if one more person hurts my best friend, I can’t be responsible for how I react!”</p><p>“No. No, I suppose you wouldn’t be.” For what feels like the first time since he entered the café, Mick sees a flicker of genuine feeling cross the man’s face. He looks…sad. A little angry. “If I were you, I’d be wary too. It’s reassuring to know that Juno has a friend like you looking out for him.”</p><p>Mick didn’t expect this turn of events. “Oh. Well, uh, thanks,” he stammers.</p><p>“But rest assured, I would never intentionally do anything to hurt Juno. That lady is…quite frankly, the best thing that has ever happened to me. To allow any more harm to come to him would be my greatest shame.”</p><p>He sounds completely earnest, and his voice is laced with emotion. Mick suddenly feels guilty for threatening him at all. He doesn’t know this man. He doesn’t even remember his name, for god’s sake. What right does he have to judge him or his relationship to Juno?</p><p>“That’s nice to hear, mister,” he mumbles.</p><p>The man nods curtly. “I can’t promise Juno will always be safe. The nature of our lives…doesn’t allow for that promise. I can promise you that I will always do my best to protect him, however.”</p><p>“Good. That…that’s good.”</p><p>Before they can say anything else, Juno has returned looking like he fought a bloody battle with the restaurant computer and very nearly lost. “That was a nightmare. Don’t see why we couldn’t have just paid in cash,” he moans as he collapses back in his seat.</p><p>His boyfriend chuckles. “If I’d known it’d be such a struggle, Juno, I would have gone up with you.”</p><p>“Yeah, well, I got there in the end.”</p><p>“It seems it’s time we part ways, then. It was a pleasure meeting you, Mick.”</p><p>Juno’s boyfriend reaches out his hand again, and this time Mick takes it. “Nice meeting you too, uh…” He can’t stand it anymore. He needs to know this guy’s name, even if it means making a fool of himself by asking. “Sorry, mister, but…your name’s completely slipped my mind. Do you think you could give me it again?”</p><p>“No,” the man replies simply.</p><p>Mick blinks. It’s a strange name, but he’s heard weirder in his time. “’No’, huh? How is that spelled, then? Like the word? Or is there a silent ‘G’ in-”</p><p>“No, I’m not telling you my name.”</p><p>Mick sees Juno frown almost imperceptivity, as though the two of them had agreed on something and the man is now going against it.</p><p>“O-oh,” Mick says. “Is this because I spilled that wine on you? ‘Cause I did say sorry for that, you know, but if you don’t have it in your heart to forgive-”</p><p>“I can’t tell you my real name,” the man says coolly, cutting him off again. “It’s too dangerous, I’m afraid, and while I believe you wouldn’t intentionally spread it around, I don’t trust you enough yet to believe you’d never do so unintentionally. Normally, I would give you an alias. In fact, I had Juno pick one out for me.”</p><p>“So much for all that time I spent searching though titles for nobility in ancient Earth languages,” Juno mutters. “I was so proud of it, too. You look like an Orion Basileus.”</p><p>“I’ll use it another time, dear.” The man pats Juno’s hand conciliatorily and then turns back to Mick. “I would have told you an alias, but I’ve decided I don’t want to lie to you. So no, I’m afraid I won’t give you a name.”</p><p>Mick can’t figure out for the life of him whether this is a sign that Juno’s boyfriend likes him or a sign that he hates him. “Oh. Okay.”</p><p>The man claps his hands on his knees and rises to his full height. Mick is tall, himself, but in his heels the man still has several inches on him. “Now, then. Juno, there’s something I wanted you to see before we go. Do you know why I chose this restaurant?”</p><p>“Because it serves that gross smoked quail dish you just ate?” Juno guesses.</p><p>His boyfriend makes a noise of offense. “It was not <em>gross.</em> And no. At least, that wasn’t the main reason. Follow me.”</p><p>He leads them out of the restaurant and, to Mick’s bemusement, into the alleyway next to it. The restaurant may have been nice, but Hyperion City is still Hyperion City, and the alley is as dark and grimy as any other in the area.</p><p>Mick catches sight of something squirming in the shadows beside a grate at the end of it, and all his fears flood back into him. Are they being lured back here to be killed? To have their blood drained, or to be fed to whatever strange being is living in the alley?</p><p>“I noticed them when I was scouting restaurants a few days ago,” Juno’s boyfriend continues, ignoring the way Mick has tensed and fallen into a defensive stance. “I must admit to finding the creatures a bit…deplorable, myself, but…”</p><p>Before he can finish or Mick can shout a warning, Juno has already rushed past them to the end of the alleyway. He kneels down and is quiet for a moment. Mick’s heart is in his throat, but then Juno looks back at them, and he’s <em>beaming.</em></p><p>“They’re tiny!” he exclaims. “Mick, come look!”</p><p>Mick approaches with caution, sliding his hovercycle keys out from his pocket and threading them between his fingers like his father taught him to do when he was a kid. “What is it, Jay?”</p><p>“Just look!”</p><p>Mick squints down at the mass in the shadows, and for the first time is able to register what it is. It isn’t a single creature, but many tiny, wrinkly pink ones. They’re curled up on a pile of spilled landfill next to the grate, which he now realizes must lead to the sewer, and mewing softly.</p><p>“They’re…rabbits,” he realizes, fighting the urge to cover his nose. The smell is atrocious, though Juno doesn’t seem to mind.</p><p>“They must only be a week or two old,” Juno says.</p><p>“And they’re here alone?”</p><p>He nods. “Their mom’s probably out getting them food.” He reaches out a finger into the pile of baby rabbits, and one of them latches onto it and chews with half-formed fangs. Juno laughs. “God, they’re adorable.”</p><p>Mick can’t help but raise an eyebrow at that descriptor. The babies aren’t old enough to be terrifying like most Martian rabbits yet, but they’re certainly not cute, either. They look like big, bald, rats, and are covered in trash.</p><p>He spares a glance towards Juno’s boyfriend. The man seems to share Mick’s opinion of the rabbits, standing a far enough distance away that the sewer stench clinging to them won’t reach him, but his expression as he watches Juno coo over them is unbearably fond.</p><p>Mick had assumed his choice in restaurant had been based in a misjudgment of Juno’s character; that he hadn’t realized that the lady would much prefer a fast food joint to a gourmet establishment on most days. That, or he’d been willing to put his own preferences above Juno’s. Mick had been wrong, though. If this is the real reason that Juno’s boyfriend brought them here, then he knows Juno very well indeed.</p><p>Juno gets back to his feet and walks over to them. “I’m gonna run back inside and see if they have anything I can feed them.”</p><p>His boyfriend laughs. “All right.”</p><p>Juno grins and kisses him on the cheek. “Thanks for choosing this place.”</p><p>“Of course, dear.”</p><p>Juno disappears inside, leaving his boyfriend and Mick alone together again. This time they’re quiet, though Mick keeps his eyes on him. The man has risen a hand to his cheek where Juno kissed him and looks vaguely awed, as though he still can’t quite believe he’s privy to kisses from Juno Steel.</p><p>Mick likes that. He likes that Juno’s love isn’t being taken for granted.</p><p>Juno is back in another minute, carrying a bag of what appears to be leftover bits and pieces from the restaurant kitchen. “They were actually really nice,” he announces. “They gave me loads of stuff. Here, help me feed them.”</p><p>Mick and the man reluctantly trail after him and crouch next to the babies.</p><p>“Where I come from, rabbits eat lettuce and carrots…” the man muses as Juno pulls out the rind of a steak and starts tearing it apart into little pieces.</p><p>“Here,” Juno says, giving them each some of the steak. “Go on, feed them. They won’t bite.”</p><p>“Jay…” Mick says, disbelieving.</p><p>“Okay, they do bite, but it won’t hurt. Their fangs won’t be fully grown in for another week.” Juno puts his palm out flat, grinning as one of the rabbits scrambles on top of it and starts devouring the meat. “See? You gotta admit they’re cute.”</p><p>“I don’t know that ‘cute’ is the adjective that I would choose,” his boyfriend says, wrinkling his nose. He still puts his hand out to the rabbits, though, clearly holding back a flinch as one nibbles at his fingers.</p><p>“Jay’s always been like this,” Mick informs him. “He made friends with all the rabbits when we were kids, even though most of them were twice as big as him. Claimed they were actually real adorable once you got to know ‘em.”</p><p> “You just didn’t know how to talk to them,” Juno declares.</p><p>“Uh-huh.”</p><p>It’s true, though, Mick realizes. Juno <em>has</em> always been like this.</p><p>Mick had worried that the way Juno talked about this boyfriend was the same as in past romantic relationships, when he’d insisted that dangerous people who were willing to beat him up were actually good and kind. He realizes he was wrong about that too, now. This isn’t like those times.</p><p>Instead, it’s more akin to what Juno was like with those rabbits, back when they were kids: he’s able to look beyond a terrifying exterior to find something soft and endearing underneath. Even if Mick can’t quite see it yet, that doesn’t mean the softness isn’t there. If nothing else, the way the man looks at Juno is certainly <em>soft,</em> even if its hidden behind designer cat-eye glasses and razor sharp black eyeliner.</p><p>There’s a yowl from somewhere beneath them, and Juno suddenly drops the bag of scraps and wrenches them both to their feet.</p><p>“Time for us to get out of here,” he says.</p><p>“Huh? Why?” Mick asks.</p><p>“Mama’s home.”</p><p>Sure enough, by the time they’ve reached the end of the alley, a large shape has climbed out of the grate. It shoots them a distrustful look before tending to its babies.</p><p>“That…is what a fully grown Martian rabbit looks like,” Juno’s boyfriend says breathlessly.</p><p>“Uh-huh,” Juno says.</p><p>“Well. That’s…something.”</p><p>They walk Mick back to his hovercycle before they part ways, and Micks spends the entirety of the walk wanting to say something, but not sure what. He’d wanted to make a good first impression on the guy his best friend is in love with, too, but he’d obviously failed that. He’d made false assumptions, spilled wine on him, threatened him…it’ll be a miracle if the guy doesn’t hate his guts now.</p><p>Still, he feels…hopeful. Happy, for Juno. It’s not often that he gets to feel happy for Juno. He’s still wary, of course- he doesn’t think he’ll ever not be- but when he sees the look of genuine fear that crosses the tall, scary-looking man’s face when Juno so much as trips over a crack in the sidewalk, he can’t help but feel like things are going to turn out okay this time.</p><p>“Take care of yourself, Jay,” he tells Juno, and then pulls him into a hug.</p><p>To his surprise, Juno doesn’t just accept the hug, but even hugs back. “I will,” he says, and for the first time since maybe ever, Mick actually believes him.</p><p>“Er, see you around,” Mick says, waving awkwardly at Juno’s boyfriend.</p><p>“I very much hope so. Goodbye, Mick,” the man replies.</p><p>As he drives away, Mick looks in his rearview mirror and sees the couple smile warmly at each other. He can’t help but smile, too.</p><p> </p><p>“So…that was Mick Mercury,” Juno says.</p><p>“Your best friend,” Nureyev says as they walk back down the street to where they parked the Ruby 7.</p><p>“Sorry if that was a little weird. It was…weird for me, too. You two are from such different parts of my life, but…you both mean a lot to me, so I’m glad you were able to meet.”</p><p>Nureyev puts an arm around Juno’s shoulder. “Me, too. You have…roots, here. It’s something I’ve never gotten to have.”</p><p>A flash of hurt crosses Juno’s face. “Nureyev, I’m-”</p><p>“Hush, dear. I’m not looking for sympathy, I only mean that it makes me all the more glad to be given the chance to know yours.”</p><p>“Then…what did you think? Of Mick?”</p><p>Nureyev ponders the question for a moment, then says, “I liked him.”</p><p>“…Really?”</p><p>“Mm. He seemed kind. He’s very protective of you, you know.”</p><p>Juno groans. “Oh, god. What did he say to you?”</p><p>“Nothing unreasonable. I wasn’t sure what to think of him at first, if I’m honest, but I can tell he’s a good friend. I’m glad you have him in your life.”</p><p>Juno leans against Nureyev’s side, smiling. “Me, too.” Suddenly his expression changes to a look of curiosity, and he says, “Why wouldn’t you give him a name? I still don’t really get that. It’s gonna make it hard to talk to him about you.”</p><p>Nureyev shrugs. “You’ve known Mick Mercury since childhood, and I get the distinct impression that you’re going to know him for a long time yet. The thought of him having to know me for decades under some paltry false name…well, it seemed inconvenient. Potentially problematic.”</p><p>Juno raises an eyebrow at Nureyev. “Decades, huh? You really planning on sticking around that long?”</p><p>“Only if you are.”</p><p>Juno laughs, then realizes that Nureyev is looking at him with an imploring expression. He genuinely wants confirmation, and Juno is more than happy to give it. “Of course I’m sticking around, Nureyev. Always.”</p><p>The tension on Nureyev’s face melts into a smile, one wide enough that both his dimples are visible. He looks delighted, like a puppy that’s just been told it’s going to be taken on a walk in the park. Juno can’t resist laughing again.</p><p>“What?” Nureyev asks indignantly.</p><p>“Nothing. You’re just cute.”</p><p>“You know, Juno, you’re the only person in the galaxy who thinks that.”</p><p>“Well, I’m right,” Juno says, squeezing Nureyev’s hand. “You’re <em>adorable.”</em></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Me: *gives Nureyev dimples as a form a self love since I have dimples*</p><p>Also...as I post this before running off to do a double as a hostess at a restaurant, I declare that the hostess briefly referenced in this story was me. S/o to Junoverse me, hope she's having a good time.</p><p>Thank you for reading!!! Kudos and comments are always very very appreciated &lt;3<br/>You can follow me on Tumblr @prydon or twitter @prydonn.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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